When life hands you lemons, chuck them back and demand for a refund.
Yeah, if only.
Visions of the future? I can deal. Pregnant best friend? Bring it. Surrounded by utter loons? It's all good.

Potentially falling in love with James Sirius Potter?...um, not so much.

Chapter 9: Staring Contests, Quidditch Games, and Bipolar Disorder

the wait wasn't too bad, right?
only a week...not bad. :D

sometimes i really wonder what must go through my head when i make these things.
whatever. here's fred :D

“Rose.” Scorpius nodded.

“Scorpius.” Rose nodded back.

“…Artemis?” I tried, since no one bothered to acknowledge my presence.

But no. Rose and Scorpius seem to be having some sort of staring contest, because they are completely locked in each other’s eyes.

And I mean that in the least romantic way possible. They aren’t ‘gazing into each other’s eyes’ or whatever. It is, quite literally, a staring contest. To see who backs down first.

I really don’t understand them. I mean, what kind of socially acceptable person does that?! Can you imagine walking up to your friend, uttering their name, and then proceeding to stare right at them in the most unnerving of ways? How creepy would that be?

“Ahem.” I coughed. No one blinked. Rose’s eyes started to water. Scorpius smirked.

I coughed again.

“Well…not that this staring contest is boring or anything, but I was sort of, kind of…um, guys?” I said uncertainly.

No reply.

This is staring to get somewhat annoying.

“SCORPIUS, WE HAVE A QUIDDITCH GAME TOMORROW!” I screamed, and they both jumped and blinked.

“Aw, Missy, I was winning.” Scorpius whined, rubbing his eyes.

“No, you weren’t!” Rose exclaimed, her eyes also closed. “I was so winning that!”

“LOOK, IT DOESN’T MATTER!” I yelled, before Scorpius could open his mouth and retort, thus starting an argument. “If you don’t come down and start playing Quidditch now, you won’t be winning anything else.” I narrowed my gaze at him.

Scorpius’s face brightened, and I could literally see the lightbulb going on above his head.

Well, actually…I don’t think this place supports electricity. Except for those computers. So…maybe a candle? That’s more Hogwarts–esque.

“That,” He beamed. “Just gave me the best idea. Missy, you go on ahead, I’ve got to talk to Rose about something.”

I threw my hands up in the air, and with a short, frustrated scream, stalked away.

“Fine, but if you get killed by our crazy captain, then it’s not my fault!” I yelled at him over my shoulder as I went. Merlin. What a pair.

I shook my head in exasperation as I sprinted down to the Quidditch Pitch, arriving just as the clock chimed six.

“You’re cutting it a little close.” James narrowed his eyes slightly at me, but I could see a faint smile on his mouth, ruining the effect.

“I’m here, aren’t I?” I panted, glaring at him. This was also slightly ruined by the fact that I couldn’t stop a small smile forming on my own face. I quickly looked away, at Al, who was playing absentmindedly with the snitch, looking thoroughly bored.

He needs a girlfriend. Just saying.

“Where’s Scorpius?” Hugo asked, looking around.

“With Rose.” I said, rolling my eyes.

“What?” Al accidentally let go of his snitch as he turned to look at me.

“He just had a ‘really great idea’ of some sort, so he’s talking to Rose.” I shrugged. “I really don’t know what it’s about.”

You know, I hate these spur of the moment decisions that people make. They completely fuck up the future, and for a little while, all I can see is shadowy blackness until it clears itself out again.

The future whirred and shifted in the back of my mind as I practiced, occasionally pushing itself to the front and blacking out my vision for a moment.

You’ll find that this is not the best state to play Quidditch in. Surprising, it’s it?

“Augh!” I yelped, quickly snatching the Quaffle that suddenly appeared in front of my face. I raced to the other end and feinted, quickly maneuvering around Hugo to chuck it in the goal before my vision momentarily turned black again.

“Why?” Rose whispered, looking up at Scorpius.

His face was half-hidden in the shadow. “Because mmmphmurglesmufra.”

I sighed. Stupid messed up vision. Didn’t tell me a thing.

“Good job, Artemis!” James called, grinning at me. I smiled tiredly back, and he seemed to pick something up from my eyes right away. His eyebrows scrunched up at the middle as he quickly sped towards me, and I suppressed my desire to curse profusely.

“Are you alright?” James asked concernedly.

“Who, me? I’m fine.” I tried smiling innocently.

“You’re not going to faint again, are you?”

“N –” I paused, knowing that I was bound to get a vision soon. “Possibly.”

He sighed. “I still can’t believe you didn’t tell me something as important as this.” He muttered. He then scrutinized me closely.

“Maybe you should just rest up today.” He said.

“No.”

“Artemis, you’ll faint again, and –”

“See, this is why I don’t tell you things!” I exploded angrily. “You think I’m…weak or something! I’m still the same Artemis Jones, Potter! I AM NOT WEAK.”

Substitute ‘weak’ with ‘freak’, and you’ll understand exactly what I really mean.

“I know you’re not.” He said calmly. “I’m just worried about you –”

“I don’t need you to be worried about me.” I hissed. “I can take care of myself.”

He flew closer. “What are you so afraid of?” He asked bitterly, his eyes probing. “Why are you so afraid of trusting people?”

“Because, sometimes, it’s better to just be alone. Then no one can betray you.” I said tiredly, pinching the bridge of my nose in defeat. “I’ll be fine, James. Please, just let me practice.”

“I would never do that to you.” He said, ignoring my request.

“Yeah, well, that’s what Apollo said, too. And he’s my twin brother, the one person I trust more than anything else in the world. Look where that got me.” I raised my hands helplessly.

“Everyone makes mistakes.”

“Yeah, well he majorly fucked up.”

“I know. But he’s only human, Artemis.”

“So am I!” I said. “What, am I the only one not allowed to make mistakes?! Why am I the one who’s left to clean everything up?”

“You’re not the only one.” He said, and as I looked at him, I realized that we were in the same, miserable boat together.

Yay for our figurative boat.

“He’s my best friend.” He said softly.

“He’s my brother.”

“She’s my cousin.”

“She’s my best friend.”

“We’re in this together, you know. You’re never alone.”

“Please go away.”

He stayed for a second, surveying me. “You know, it’s true that you never realize how important something is until you lose it, but you also don’t realize how important something else is until it arrives.”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” I snapped, completely not the mood for his weird, wise sayings.

He blinked, and his expression cleared. “So, let’s try out that new formation, okay? Spread the word, Artemis.”

“Huh?”

I stared, mouth agape, as he sped away to tell everyone else.

Jeez, bipolar much?

***

It’s true that you never realize how important something is until you lose it, but you also don’t realize how important something else is until it arrives.

I shook my head, hard, and focused on the game in front of me.

Forget it, Artemis. Focus. Concentrate. It doesn’t mean a thing. HEAD IN THE GAME.

“Artemis, catch!”

My hands reflexively snatched the Quaffle out of the air and I sped towards the opposite goal, weaving around various Hufflepuffs.

No more thinking. This is Quidditch. You play with your heart.

Crap. I stopped, spinning around slowly, surrounded by members of the opposite team. I sighed. Well, this is what I get for being distracted.

Praying that it would work, I yelled, “SCORPIUS!” I and threw the Quaffle up as hard as I could, quickly dropping down as the Hufflepuff chasers shot forward and up.

I glanced up, and saw that Scorpius, grinning widely, was holding the Quaffle as he darted out of the huddle. I distinctly heard something that sounded suspiciously like ‘SUCKERS!’ come out of his mouth as he raced to the Hufflepuff goal. The keeper narrowed his eyes at Scorpius, who grinned lazily and shot a goal in one of the side rings. The Keeper lunged to the side, smiling. Knowing what was coming, I quickly leaped forward and seized the Quaffle before the Keeper could, grinning at Scorpius, who nodded, a smirk still etched on his face.

We call this the ‘Catch’ maneuver for a reason. I laughed as me and Scorpius threw the Quaffle back and forth as fast as we could, constantly on the move. Then James appeared, intercepted the catch at the perfect point, and…

“SCORE FOR GRYFFINDOR!” Dom and Freddie yelled into their mikes.

I grinned and fist-bumped both James and Scorpius as we flew back.

After that, it was just a blur of colors and shapes and bodies and faces. Occasionally I would feel the Quaffle in my hands, but it was quickly out, either thrown to Scorpius, James, or the goal.

I grinned and shook my head as Scorpius made yet another goal. He seemed bent on becoming the hero of the game, it seemed, because he had made the most goals of the day.

My eyebrows raised in surprise when I saw him pointing at Rose in the crowds, winking and smirking like the arrogant little toe-rag I never knew he could be. Rose scowled at him and scrunched down in her seat, blushing profusely.

Oh, dear. I think I know what this ‘opportunity’ might be.

And I don’t think James will like it too much.

This is not going to be pretty.

He likes Scorpius, sure, but as a boyfriend for his baby cousin…yeah, somehow, I don’t think that’s going to blow over too well for James. He doesn’t think Rose or Lily, or any female in his family for that matter, should date before the age of twenty. That’s why I was more than just a little surprised that James was so supportive about Dom’s baby.

Whoa, my best friend is having a baby.

The realization hit me like a ton of bricks and for a moment I froze, blinking in surprise at the world around me. My best friend is going to be a mother. And I’m going to be an aunt.

“Oi, you okay?” James shouted over at me. I looked at him, bewildered.

“Dom’s pregnant.” I whispered, the words sounding foreign to me.

“WHAT?!” He yelled. “Artemis, speak up, I can’t hear you!”

“Dom…” I continued in that same bewildered voice. Then my world started to tinge with black.

“Fuck, ALBUS! CATCH THE SNITCH NOW! WE NEED TO END THE GAME!” James shouted at his brother, who nodded.

“Artemis!” James yelled at me. I smiled reassuringly at him, then the next thing I knew, Dom’s face was spinning in my mind as I spiraled towards the ground.

I hate being a Seer.

Blurry images. Vague figures. The world seemed to shift and spin around my eyes as I gazed blearily through the haze, trying to make some sense out of the shadows.

“Artemis…” Dom’s face peered out at me, her blue eyes shining with tears. I tried to focus on it, but it faded away.

“NO! NO!”

Where is that coming from?! I whipped around, eyes wide as I peered into the murk of the future, trying to see whose heartbroken voice was screaming that.

“NO, PLEASE! STOP! DON’T!”

My heart seemed to rip a little at the sound of the girl’s voice, which was terrified and desolate and so incredibly painful, like she was being crucio’d.

“What should we name…?”

“…would never leave you…”

“Iridescent…”

“Love…James…forever…”

“Marry me?”

I groaned in frustration and grabbed my head, trying to make sense of the images and words that swirled through my brain.

I groaned and sat up in bed, grabbing at my aching head, refusing to open my eyes.

“You’re okay.” James’ relieved voice poked through the haze occupying my mind. “Oh, thank Merlin.” The second part of that sentence came out muffled.

“Of course she’s okay.” Dom’s voice said softly, and I sighed and opened my eyes, noticing right away that James was slumped over, his head in his hands. Dom was gently stroking his crazy hair, looking at me expectantly.

“James, I’m fine.” I said, touching his shoulder. “James.”

“Yeah.” He said, looking up at me. His eyes were tired and dull, and he sent me a weak smile. “Please never do that to me again.”

“Please never bring me to the hospital wing for something as stupid as that again.” I countered, narrowing my eyes at him. He grinned sheepishly, some of the light coming back into his eyes.

“I was worried.”

“You’re like the mother I never had. Or wanted.” I muttered, rubbing at my temples again.

“Whatever, Artemis.”

I sighed, groaned, and banged at my head, because, clearly, that must be the cure to this annoying headache.

“Oi, you okay?” He asked concernedly after a second of my head-banging. Curiously enough, it didn’t do anything except make the headache, if possible, even worse.

“I’ve got a bitch of a headache, but other than that, I’m great.” I sighed, banging on my head once more for luck.

Headache just got bitchier. Joy of joys.

“So, did we win?” I asked him, giving up on the head-banging and looking at him.

He grinned, some more light filtering through his gold irises. “Oh, yeah. Al’s a freaking genius; he caught the snitch, then dove down and caught you in about two seconds flat.”

I laughed. “I love that kid! Can I steal him as my brother?”

“No way.” Dom said. “You can’t take away my favorite cousin! Then I’ll be left with these freaks."

Oh, as if you’re not a freak yourself, Dominique.

“Hey!” James said indignantly. “I thought I was your favorite cousin!”

“I don’t have a favorite cousin.” Dom said calmly.

“But you just said –”

“No, I didn’t.”

“You just said –”

“Shut up.”

“You –”

“Shut up, James.”

“I’m too tired for this.” James muttered, rubbing his own temples. Dom grinned.

“There’s a party in the common room right now. Wanna go?” She asked eagerly.

“Not really.” I blew a random chunk of hair out of my face.

“Great, come on!” She took my hand and dragged me off the bed.

“Dom, I said I didn’t want to go.” I reminded her in a patient voice. She stared at me.

“Uh-huh. And?”

“I don’t want to go.”

“Yes, you do.”

“No, I don’t.”

She looked at me. “Yes. You do.” She said.

“No. I don’t.” I replied slowly.

“Well, too bad.” She towed me behind her as she walked briskly out of the hospital wing. “You’re going anyway.

“No, Dom.” I moaned. “I don’t wanna go.” I dug my heels back into the ground and tried to pull myself out of her grip, but she merely pulled me harder.

“Artemis, stop being difficult.” She said through gritted teeth, tugging on my arm again.

“I’m not going.” I said stubbornly, plopping down on the ground with some difficulty. “I’ve got a headache. I refuse to go.”

Dom’s jaw locked as she glared menacingly at me. “You will come with me now, otherwise I will rip off each and every one of your shiny golden locks with my bare hands.”

I just stuck my tongue out at her. “You wouldn’t do that to me.”

Merlin, I really hope she wouldn’t.

Her eyes narrowed some more, and then she took out her wand and flicked it at me; I immediately flipped over on my back (and let out an unattractive shriek in the process) and got dragged on the floor as the bond pulled me backwards.

“HELP ME.” I mouthed desperately at James, scrabbling wildly at the floor in an attempt to hold myself back somehow.

He laughed. Git.

first off, i have to apologize for the length of this chapter. it's rather short, and i'm terribly sorry. i'll try to get the next chapter up soon :)
at least there's more james! you like more james? i know you like more james! i like more james. more james is niiiice.
tee hee.
aaah. anyway.
hold on, let me bask in the glow of sheer happiness that accompanies spring break....aahhh...WAIT: REALITY CHECK TIME: term paper. fifteen pages. underground railroad. five sat class essays. five vocab quizzes. flash cards. two chem labs. math homework. health project. health packet. english book.
damn.
sigh. life sucks, man.

ANYWAY. enough about my homework. let's talk chapter, shall we??
lately, i've been getting lotsa complaints about artemis being an annoying shit and WHY THE HELL ISNT SHE JUST FALLING, ALREADY?!
artemis is an idiot, and she's scared of love.
what? we can't all be perfect.
don't judge m - her.

question time? question time.
1) Jason or Fred: Who's cuter? (TAYLOR LAUTNER IS A SEXY BEAST, so jacob wins)
2) What do you think the bet between Rose and Scorpius is?? (waggles eyebrows)
3) What couple do you want to scream at most: Artemis and James, Rose and Scorpius, or Fred and Alex?
4) Whaddaya think is going to happen next?? (should have been the first question, haha)
5) What's the best way to teach sleazy Matt a lesson? (one of my lovely reviewers - i'm so sorry i forgot your name, sweetie, i'm rather shit at names - mentioned buses, rope, ankles, and much screaming. you do the math.)

methinks that's enough to sustain you for a bit :D

i'm a little hyper. spring break+candy+realizing that the kid you like has the same favorite song as you (and then sings along with you in the car while you're belting in tune with the radio)= very happy me.

you know what would make even happier me. reviews. so feed me, please!!